The Adventures Of Magnus Bane And Isabelle Lightwood
by alice writes stuff
Summary: It's been a few months since Valentine showed up and Izzy's life became more complicated than ever. Of all the things to come from this, one of the most surprising was the friendship that formed between her and her brother's boyfriend, Magnus. Not that she minds- after all, there are worse people Alec could've chosen, and Magnus's advice could help in her own romantic struggles...
1. Chapter 1

**A.N- Okay, it's finally happening. I'm finally getting round to writing this story. This first chapter follows the Malec date in 2×5. Then, in the next chapter, Magnus and Izzy will meet up for coffee and talk about it, amongst other things. Then Izzy's arc will start in the chapter after that. With that being said, I hope you guys enjoy it! I don't own the characters.**

As Magnus approached the Institute, he wondered if they'd actually let him in. With everything that had been going on lately, were the rules prohibiting Downworlders from entering still in place? He hoped they weren't, otherwise this might get complicated. Knocking on the door, he was relieved when it opened to reveal Alexander.

"Hey," he smiled. Magnus smiled back, and started to lead the way down the steps of the Institute. He'd only got down a couple of steps when he heard Alec behind him. "Watch out!" He turned around, just as Alec started to fall. Magnus reached out to catch him, but he was too late, and they were both knocked to the ground.

"Are you okay?" he asked, looking up into Alec's concerned eyes.

"I should be asking you that," Alec sighed, getting to his feet and holding out a hand to help Magnus up.

"I'm fine." He held out his hand for Alec, letting him decide whether or not he'd take it. After a moment, he did, and they headed off towards the bar they'd agreed to meet at.

As could've been expected, not even the simple walk to the bar went by without anything happening. It had been going so well, when somebody riding past on a bike almost knocked Alexander over again. Grabbing his arm, Magnus pulled him out of the way.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" The guy yelled.

"Sorry!" Alec shouted back, then turned back to Magnus.

"Are you okay?" Magnus asked, looking carefully at his face, checking to see if there were any bruises.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He started walking down the street again, Magnus having to speed-walk a little to get caught up to him.

When they reached the bar, Alec held the door open. For a moment, Magnus considered making a joke about whether or not that was a good idea, considering how… coordinated he'd had seemed so far. However, there was a chance that Alexander was self-conscious about that, so it was probably best not to make a big deal about it, just in case.

They got a table in the corner, near the back. It was out of the way enough that they wouldn't be disturbed, and that people wouldn't be able to stare at them. This was their first date, after all, and he wanted it to be perfect. Well, as perfect as it could be.

"Have you… have you come here before? With dates, I mean." Alec asked after a minute. Magnus shook his head.

"No, Isabelle suggested it." He smiled. "This might be a surprise to you, but this is the first proper date I've been on in a long time. Normally I'd just go out and see what happens."

"That must've been fun." He paused. "Wait, you and Izzy are friends?"

"Well, yes. Why, are you worried we meet up every week and talk about you behind your back?" Alec was staring at him. "Don't worry, we only do the first part. There are plenty of other things we can talk about besides you."

"That's great! I kinda hoped you guys would hit it off. Now I just need to hope for the best with the rest of my family."

"I'm sure everything will work out fine, Alexander." If he was being honest, he was a bit nervous about that too. After the less than warm reception from Alec's mother, he had doubts that all the Light woods would welcome the idea of the two of them being together. Still, it was best to take things one step at a time.

"Um, what do you want?" Alec asked, after a few more minutes of silence. Magnus raised an eyebrow at him, which made him blush as he realised what he'd asked. "To drink, I meant to drink!"

Magnus wanted to laugh, but instead he said, "Oh, right. I'll have the best wine they've got. Want me to go order it?"

"No, I'll go, it's fine. Want anything to eat?"

"Yeah, just get a plate of fries or something, we'll share."

"Got it." He leaned over to kiss Magnus on the cheek, before standing up and heading for the bar, leaving a blushing warlock behind him.

When he got back, balancing a full wine glass, a plate of fries and a beer on a tray, Magnus stood up to help him carry it all over.

"Thanks," Alec muttered, setting down the glasses almost clumsily, his hands shaking a little. Magnus sighed, knowing he had to say something.

"Alexander, I know this is a big deal for you, but you're going to have to try and relax. You don't have anything to worry about, you're doing wonderfully. Just don't stress about it, okay?" Alec sighed.

"Okay, I'll try." He sat down and took a couple of fries from the plate. "I'm sorry I knocked you over earlier, too. I should've looked where I was going."

"It's fine, honestly. It's going to take a lot more than that to make me want to end this relationship." Alec smiled again, and reached out to take hold of Magnus's hand. Unfortunately, though, his arm bumped against his beer, knocking it all over the fries.

"Shit, I'm sorry!" He stood up, possibly to go get a towel or something to mop up the mess. With a sigh, Magnus snapped his fingers. In a second, the table was back to normal. Alec stared at him.

"You didn't have to do that."

"No, but it saved you having to clean it up, so it's not so bad, is it?" Alec shrugged, and sat back down.

Unfortunately, nothing could last forever, and it was soon time to leave.

"Can I walk you back to your apartment?" Alec asked as they put on their jackets, having already paid for their food and drinks.

"I would love that, thanks." They headed off, already holding hands this time.

When they arrived outside Magnus's apartment, he wasn't quite ready to say goodbye yet.

"Do you want to come in for a bit, or do you want to go back to the Institute?" He thought it would be best to keep things open. After all, there was every chance Alexander was ready to go home, and he didn't want to scare him off by being too forward.

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea." For a moment, Magnus blinked at him, then he opened the door, letting them both in. Taking off his shoes and jacket, he stood for a moment, not sure what to do. Alec walked over to him, until he was standing right in front of him. Magnus looked up into his eyes, figuring out where this was going. He was proven right when Alec leaned in to kiss him, on the lips this time.

They were still kissing when they reached the bedroom, although by now their kisses had developed a sense of urgency to them. Magnus wrapped his arms around Alec's waist, pulling him closer, but it still didn't feel like he was close enough. Unexpectedly, Alec pushed him up against the wall, the sudden impact making him gasp.

"Are you okay?" Alec whispered, one hand cupping Magnus's cheek.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He leaned in and kissed Alec again.

This really wasn't anything Magnus hadn't done before. It shouldn't feel new at all, but somehow it did. That was what it was like with Alec- everything felt like it was happening for the first time. Alec took a step backwards, breaking the kiss. Without thinking, Magnus took a step forward, just stopping himself from resuming the kiss. Maybe Alec had had enough, and wanted to go home. Not that that would be a problem.

"Do you wanna- I mean, do you-" he sighed, and pointed to the bed behind them. Realising what he meant, Magnus nodded. Resuming their kiss once again, Alec started to back up again, taking Magnus with him this time, until they reached the bed. Spinning them round, Alec gently pushed Magnus back down onto the bed, following a second later.

It wasn't until a few minutes later, by which point Alec's shirt was off and his was unbuttoned, that it occurred to Magnus that they were really doing this. If that were the case, he thought to himself, he wasn't going to bottom, not this time. He grabbed hold of Alec's shoulders, and before he could say anything, he'd already been flipped onto his back, and Magnus was already trailing kisses on his neck.

He hadn't meant to say it, he really hadn't. It just slipped out.

"Aku cinta kamu," he whispered into Alec's ear shortly after they'd changed their position. Alec just stared at him in confusion.

"What does that mean?" For a moment, he considered lying, pretending it was some endearment or something, anything but what it really was. That didn't feel right, though.

"It means I love you." Alec's eyes widened, and he pushed Magnus off him. "Hey, what's wrong?" Magnus asked, sitting up.

"Why did you say that?" Alec asked, frowning. He didn't seem angry, just… freaked out, was probably the best way of describing it. Again, for a moment, Magnus considered not telling him the whole truth. However, that really wouldn't be right, so he settled for honesty.

"Because it's true." He sighed. "Look, I know it hasn't been long. I know there's a lot we don't know about each other. But I also know that I haven't felt this strongly about someone else in a long time, and I know that I love you." Alec was still watching him. "I understand if you don't feel the same way, that's fine." Alec took a deep breath, before replying.

"That's the thing, though. I don't know if I do yet. I know I like being with you, and I was ready for whatever we were doing earlier. Maybe it's just the big declarations I'm not ready for." He closed his eyes. "Maybe I should go, and we can talk about all this properly tomorrow."

"If that's what you want." Magnus got up off the bed, trying not to let the situation bother him too much. After all, they still had time to figure all this out. What difference did another night make? He fixed his shirt, before grabbing Alec's off the floor and handing it to him. While Alec was putting it back on, he opened a drawer in his bedside cabinet, pulling out a small mirror to check if he still looked alright. Using a little magic, he fixed his hair, slightly relieved that nothing else had gotten messed up.

"You know, I shouldn't be surprised you're using magic for something like that." Alec said, the smile almost audible in his voice.

"Well, there's no sense having something if you never use it, is there?" He led the way back into the main room.

"Sorry to cut the night short like this, Magnus. I'll make it up to you, I promise." Magnus sighed.

"Don't worry, Alexander. It's fine. Just call me when you get back to the Institute, so I know you got home safely. That would be enough."

"Alright." Putting his shoes and jacket back on, he left the apartment.

* * *

By the time Alec reached the Institute, he felt like an idiot. How could he have messed up that whole thing so badly? The rational part of him knew he was over-exaggerating. Surely it couldn't have been that bad? Unfortunately, though, for once the rational part of him wasn't as strong as it usually was.

When he opened the door and entered the Institute, he was surprised to find Izzy there waiting for him.

"I'd have thought you'd be asleep by now."

"I wanted to hear how your date went."

"Where do you want me to start?" He sighed.

"That bad, huh?"

"Honestly, Izzy, it wasn't. It was wonderful. I just… I just messed up a few times. I got nervous, and I may or may not have knocked him over. And almost got hit by a guy on a bike. And spilled beer all over our food." Izzy sighed.

"Okay, it's probably not as bad as you think it is. Everyone messes up on their first date. I'm sure Magnus will understand. I'm meeting up with him for coffee tomorrow, I can talk to him about it if you want."

"You know, I'd rather you didn't. Look, I'm gonna go to bed, it's been a long night."

"Okay, I'll see you in the morning." With that, she turned around and went to her room. Almost reluctantly, Alec went to his room too. Once he got there, he pulled out his phone and dialled Magnus's number.

"Hey, that's me back."

"That's good to hear. Did you make it back alright?"

"Yeah. Um, listen, do you think I could come back over tomorrow night? I feel kinda bad about the way that ended this time, and I'd like to try again, if you'll let me."

"Of course. You should get some sleep just now, though. I'll see you tomorrow night." With that, he disconnected the call, leaving Alec to wonder if things had really gone so bad after all.


	2. Chapter 2

**A.N- Wow, I'm on a roll with this! Don't expect me to always update this frequently, though. The first four chapters will probably come out quite quickly, but from there anything could happen. Also, I apologise for how short this chapter is. Hopefully you guys will still enjoy it. As usual, I don't own the characters.**

When Isabelle got to the coffee shop the following day, she was almost surprised to see Magnus there. With everything that had been going on, she hadn't thought they'd be able to continue meeting up like this every week. Fortunately, though, there was no need to cancel this week.

"You know, I didn't think you were going to show up," she said, taking a seat at their usual table.

"Why wouldn't I? For once there's no major crisis to deal with, so there's nothing to stop us from meeting up today." Isabelle smiled.

"That's true. It makes a nice change, doesn't it? Not having anything too serious to worry about."

"Indeed."

"Alright," she began, no longer wanting to beat around the bush. "How did everything go last night? I've already heard Alec's side of the story, now I wanna hear yours."

"How did it go?" he echoed. "Surprisingly well, actually. I didn't realise how… uncoordinated Alexander can be when he's nervous, but that wasn't a problem, not really. If anything, I'm the one who messed up. I overstepped the mark, telling him that I love him. No wonder he left shortly after. It was too much, too soon."

"Do you, though? Love him, I mean." He smiled.

"Yes, I do. Sorry, that must be weird."

"Not at all. I'm really happy for you guys. That much was true. She didn't have a problem with them being together- anything that made Alec smile more was good enough for her.

They sat sipping their coffees for a few minutes, before Izzy spoke up again.

"I wonder if Clary would like this place. Maybe I should bring her here some time." Magnus took another sip of coffee, and Izzy looked at him curiously. "What was that for?"

"New drinking game. Every time you mention Clary, I have to take a drink. It would be more effective if I had alcohol, but oh well."

"Do I really talk about her that much?" he looked at her for a moment.

"Yes, you do." Isabelle frowned, trying desperately to think of a rational way to explain her frequent references to her red-haired friend.

"Maybe I do, but it doesn't mean anything. She's just my friend." He sighed.

"Isabelle, you pretty much asked me if I thought you should bring Clary here on a date five minutes ago. Also, I've seen the way you look at her. It's definitely not the look of friendship."

"I don't like her that way! How many times do I have to say it?" Magnus rolled his eyes.

"Yes, you do. Now either you do something about this, or I will. And trust me, I do not want to have to be your wingman, so if it comes down to that, it will not end well." She sighed and closed her eyes.

"Fine. I'll talk to her tomorrow, see if she wants to come here for coffee or something."

"Okay. You know, you're easier to persuade than I thought you'd be. I was almost expecting you to be like Alexander."

"Well, I'm not."

"That's a relief. There's only so many stubborn Lightwoods I can deal with in one year." For a few minutes, they were silent, before she decided to speak again.

"Do you think Alec will be okay with this? I know he doesn't like Clary very much."

"I'm sure he won't mind. You supported him, it wouldn't be fair if he didn't do the same for you, whether he likes Clary or not. I'm sure he can put that aside for you."

"I know. Really, I think it's everyone else I'm worried about. Mom, Dad, Max, even Clary herself could react poorly to this. Still, maybe my parents will just be happy that she's a Shadowhunter. Mom said that was the problem she had with you and Alec, but I have a feeling the fact that you're a guy had something to do with it."

"That and the fact that I'm a 400-year-old immortal warlock who doesn't have the best reputation amongst your people."

"Yeah, that might be it too." She sighed. "Why did all this have to happen at once? I'm not even sure if coming out as bi is what worries me, or if it's the fact that I'm coming out so soon after Alec did, or even the fact that it's Valentine's daughter I've got a crush on."

"I'm sure everything will work out fine, Isabelle. You've just got to take it one step at a time. Talk to her tomorrow, and take it from there. If she's interested, then I'll gladly give you advice on what to do next. If not, then you'll have to deal with that in your own way."

"I don't know if I can do this, Magnus. I really like her."

"I know you do. Just don't worry about it too much. There's plenty more fish in the sea, if it doesn't work out."

"Maybe you're right." She smiled, feeling a little better about the whole thing now. Maybe, just maybe, this wouldn't be as bad as she was expecting it to be.


	3. Chapter 3

**A.N- Hey, guys, I'm back again with another update. This chapter gets a little sad near the end, but hopefully you guys will still like it. Don't forget to read and review! As usual, I own nothing.**

When Izzy got back to the Institute that afternoon, her first instinct was to go find Alec. She needed to let him know what was going on now rather than later. After a few minutes of searching, she found him in the archery range, collecting his arrows.

"Alec, can I talk to you about something?" Picking up the last of his arrows, he came over to where she was standing.

"Sure, what's up?" He dropped the arrows into a bucket and sat down at a bench in front of the target range. Isabelle sat down next to him.

"I'm not sure where to start."

"Just start at the beginning, maybe?" She looked down at her hands, which she was twisting in her lap.

"This is going to sound weird, but how did you know for sure that you weren't... you know, straight?"

"Probably about the time Jace showed up. I mean, I always had a feeling, but he just confirmed it." He frowned at her. "Why do you ask?"

"I think I might be bi." She looked up, not knowing what she expected to see. Shock, maybe? Instead, he seemed to be taking it in, and it was a while before he spoke again.

"Okay," he said. "Okay, that's fine." She looked at him in confusion.

"You mean, you're not angry?" He stared at her.

"Why would I be angry? You've been supporting me for years now, it's only right if I do the same for you."

"You know, that's almost exactly what Magnus said." He smiled.

"That's a little weird." He paused for a moment. "Anyway, what led you to thinking you might be bi?" She considered making something up, but thought better of it.

"It was Clary. I know you don't like her very much, Alec, but I do. I really, really do. At first it was just a case of wanting to be her friend, but now... now it's escalated into something else." She sighed. "What should I do?"

"Be honest with her. Don't do what I did, don't dance around your feelings, avoiding addressing them until it's almost too late. Even if you think it won't end well, take a chance because you never know when you'll get another one."

"Alright." She stood up. "Thanks for the advice. I think I'm going to try finding her and telling her what I feel. I'll let you know how it goes, okay?" "Good luck, Izzy." Smiling at him, she left the room in search of Clary.

She found her in her room, in the middle of a drawing of a forest. Clary had been drawing and painting a lot lately, whenever she'd had the time to spare. Isabelle guessed it was a form of escape, a way of balancing her old life with her new one. For a moment, Isabelle just watched her, the look of concentration on her face, the way she seemed so lost in her art. She was so beautiful... Izzy gave herself a little shake, trying to concentrate on the task at hand.

"Hey, Clary." Clary turned around, a smile on her face.

"Hey, Isabelle. What's up?" She had a smudge of what looked like paint on her cheek, and it was all Izzy could do not to wipe it off.

"It's kinda a long story. Look, maybe you should sit down. There's something I need to tell you." Clary set down her pencil and went to sit down on a chair.

"What's going on? You're not dying, are you?" Izzy shook her head, wondering how to word what she wanted to say. Eventually, she decided to just come out and say it. Taking a deep breath, she began.

"I really like you, Clary. Like, I want to date you. There, I said it. Now you know." She exhaled, feeling relieved now to have told Clary what she felt. However, her relief soon faded when she saw the look on her friend's face. Surprise was soon replaced by sadness, and Izzy almost dreaded what she was going to say.

"Isabelle... I appreciate your honesty, but I can't really think about a relationship just now. It's still not been long since I had to end things with Jace, and I don't know if I want to start anything new. Besides, I don't know if I feel that way about you. I mean, don't get me wrong, I like you a lot, and you've been a big help the last few weeks, but I don't know if I wanna be with you." Izzy closed her eyes, not sure what to say. Deciding to put on a brave front, she smiled.

"Alright, I understand. I hope this doesn't ruin things between us, but I'll understand if you want to take a break from being friends for a while." Clary looked at her for a moment.

"Um, would you mind if I took a few days to think about this? It's kinda a lot to take in. I'll come find you when I'm ready to talk, okay?" Isabelle nodded.

"Okay, that's fine. Thanks for listening, I really appreciate that. Take as much time as you need." Before either of them could say any more, she left the room, once again seeking out Alec. She found him in the kitchen, drinking what she assumed was coffee. Judging by the fact that he was wearing one of the few decent shirts he owned, she wondered if he was going to see Magnus again. It seemed a little soon for a second date, but she wasn't about to say that. As soon as she entered the room, he turned to face her.

"How did it go?" He asked, a smile on his face. There must've been something in the way she was standing, though, because almost instantly his smile faded, and he set down his coffee cup, walked over and pulled her into a hug.

"I'm sorry, Iz." It was all he needed to say. Before she knew it, she was crying, hugging him just as tightly as he was hugging her. She didn't know what was happening. She never cried, not over things like this. After a minute or so, she managed to stop. Alec handed her a tissue.

"Look, I've already made plans with Magnus to come over and see him tonight, but I don't mind cancelling if you need someone to talk to." For a moment, Izzy considered asking for that. However, she knew it wouldn't be fair. Alec already did so much for her, she couldn't ask him to give up his evening for her too.

"No, you go. If I need you, I'll call. I think... I think I need to be alone for a while, to get my head around all this. Don't worry about me, okay? Just enjoy your evening and I'll see you when you get back." He frowned, before nodding.

"Alright, if that's what you want. Just remember that I'm on the other end of the phone if you want to talk." She allowed herself to smile.

"Okay, I'll keep that in mind." She would try not to call him unless she absolutely had to. As hurt as she was by what had happened with Clary, she wasn't about to let it ruin Alec's night. She would try and handle this on her own as best she could. After all, she was a Shadowhunter. What was a little heartbreak to someone like her? Maybe she just wasn't used to being on the receiving end. Whatever it was, she was going to have to deal with it. Maybe, just maybe,it would all work out for the best in the end.


	4. Chapter 4

**A.N- Okay, this is gonna be a long one. Hopefully you guys will still enjoy it. Also, this is my first time writing smut, so I'm sorry if it's not very good. Once again, I don't own the characters.**

Magnus hadn't expected to feel nervous. After all, he knew what was probably going to happen, and it really wasn't anything he hadn't done before. Yet, he couldn't help but feel nervous. Maybe it was Alec. Knowing this was his first time, wanting it to go perfectly, it was more nerve-wracking than it should've been. He was starting to pace up and down the living room when the doorbell rang. When he opened the door, Alexander was there, wearing another dark blue button-down shirt. For a moment, he wondered if it was the same one from last night. Maybe he ought to do something about that.

"Hey," Alec said, a smile already on his face.

"Hey," Magnus stepped aside to let him in, and they went to sit down on the couch. "Do you want something to drink?" he nodded. Magnus snapped his fingers, and two glasses of apple juice appeared in front of them. Alec picked one up and took a sip.

"Wait a second, is this apple juice?"

"Yes. Why, do you not like apple juice?"

"Yeah, I do. I was just expecting cider or something."

"I thought as much. Look, if anything's going to happen tonight, I don't want it to be because either of us was under the influence. Even if it's just one glass, I don't want to take that chance."

"Wow, you're really taking this seriously, aren't you? Alright, since you know what you're doing here, I'll go along with it."

After they finished their drinks, Alec turned to look at Magnus. He didn't say anything, he just leaned in and kissed him. Magnus pulled away.

"Are you sure you want to do this? You know you can stop any time you want." Alexander smiled.

"Of course I'm sure." He leaned in again, pausing just before their lips touched. "Are you okay with this?"

"Yes, of course." He closed the gap, kissing Alec hard.

After a few minutes, Magnus was seriously considering suggesting they go to the bedroom, rather than stay on the couch. By now, Alec was lying on the couch, with Magnus on top of him. It probably wasn't very comfortable, since Alec was too tall to really fit.

"Alexander," he whispered.

"Yeah?" He looked at Alexander for a moment.

"I think we should move to the bedroom. This doesn't seem like the best place."

"Yeah, okay, that's fine." They got up off the couch and made their way into the bedroom. Magnus sighed when he realised he'd forgotten to make the bed that morning. A quick bit of magic soon fixed that, however, and he was able to concentrate on Alec, who was standing awkwardly near the door.

"Is everything okay?" he asked.

"Yeah. I just- this was easier last night, now I don't know what to do." Magnus smiled at him, trying to be reassuring.

"You know we don't _have_ to do this tonight. There's no shame in not feeling ready just yet." Alec took a few steps closer, until they were standing in front of each other.

"It's not that I don't feel ready. I just… I just don't want to mess it up, you know?"

"That's understandable. Try not to worry, though. Everything will be fine." Alec sighed.

"I really hope you're right." Magnus smiled.

"Of course I'm right, when am I not?" Alec rolled his eyes, but he looked like he was trying not to laugh too. "Come here," he whispered after a moment, grabbing Alec by the collar of his shirt and pulling him into a kiss.

This was definitely progressing faster than it had last night. It must've only been five minutes, and already they'd made it to the bed. In the back of his mind, Magnus thought they should be taking this a little slower, but at the same time, Alec seemed fine with this pace, which was the important thing.

Magnus was starting to lose track of all the runes on Alec's body. He'd been tracing them with his fingers ever since he'd got Alec's shirt off a few minutes ago, and he'd lost count of how many there were. Not that he was really keeping score anyway. Slowly, he was working his way down to Alec's waist, pausing a moment before unbuttoning his jeans.

"Do you mind?" Alec nodded.

"Are you going to ask that every time you do something?"

"Just for this first time, then next time it won't be as constant."

"Okay." He closed his eyes, letting Magnus carry on with what he'd been doing.

Before long, he was ready to start preparing Alec, when he realised thee was a slight problem-fortunately, he wasn't the only one to notice.

"Magnus," he whispered, grabbing his hand.

"I know." Quickly, he slid his rings off, placing them on his bedside table. "Is that better?" Alec nodded, and Magnus decided to put the first finger in.

Magnus wasn't trying to hurt Alec here, he really wasn't. He did love him, after all. Just because he wasn't going to say so again didn't make it any less true. However, sometimes a little bit of pain was alright, he mused as he moved in and out of Alec. His lips felt attached to Alec's neck, while his hands continued roaming all over his body. By now, a few marks had appeared on Alec's skin from where Magnus had been kissing him, and it would almost be worth sneaking into the Institute tomorrow to see how he was going to explain them.

Unfortunately, though, after what must've been hours, they both reached climax, ultimately bringing the whole thing to an end. For a while, they lay there, looking at each other, getting their breath back. Alec looked up at him curiously. He cupped Magnus's cheek with one hand, running his thumb under his eye.

"So that's what they look like," Realising what he meant, Magnus jerked his head away, reaching up to fix the glamour that would conceal his cat eyes. Alec grabbed his hand. "Don't do that."

"But-"

"You don't have to hide from me. I don't care." Magnus stared at him.

"Aren't you afraid?" Now it was Alec's turn to stare.

"Why would I be afraid? I know you're a warlock, I know that all warlocks have marks, and this is yours. Why would I be afraid of that?"

"Some people get very afraid, especially if they know what it means." He closed his eyes, thinking of his mother for a moment.

"Well, I'm not." Leaning up, he kissed him again.

A couple minutes later, they were lying on their backs, only a centimetre or so between them. Alec slipped his hand into Magnus's.

"Can I stay here tonight?" Magnus rolled his eyes.

"Don't be ridiculous, of course you can." He smiled. "Do you want to call someone back at the Institute, let them know what's happening?" Alec nodded.

"Yeah. I should call Izzy, see how she's doing. Clary turned her down today. Did you know about that?" he asked.

"Yeah, I did. Admittedly, I encouraged Isabelle to go talk to her. If I'd known she'd get turned down, maybe I wouldn't have said anything."

"Don't worry about it, okay?" He smiled, and reached for his phone. While he dialled Isabelle's number, Magnus reached into the drawer of his bedside table and pulled out his mirror and a packet of make-up wipes. As Alec assured his sister that he'd be back in the morning and that everything was okay, he washed off the make-up around his eyes. Before long, Alec hung up, and lay back down, watching him. He'd expected him to say something about the make-up, but instead he said,

"Is it always like that?"

"What do you mean?" He had a feeling he knew what Alec meant, but it didn't hurt to ask anyway.

"That. What we just did." Magnus thought about for a moment.

"It depends on the person, really. Sometimes it's good, sometimes it isn't. It's completely subjective." Alec nodded.

"Fair enough." Magnus finished washing off his make-up and lay back down next to Alec. For a moment, Magnus wanted to tell Alec that he loved him again, but thought better of it. No sense scaring him off again with any more big declarations. After a few more minutes, Alec fell asleep, Magnus following shortly after.

 _When he opened his eyes, he was standing in Victor Aldertree's office. At first he wondered why he was there and what was going on, until he saw Raphael tied to a chair in the middle of the room. He tried to take a step forward, tried to summon his magic so that he could free him, but he was completely frozen._

 _There was nothing he could do. Nothing except watch as Aldertree approached Raphael with his UV-ray laser, burning Raphael's skin. He couldn't even move his hands to block out the screams…_

Magnus sat up, looking around the dark room. It had only been a dream… a horrible, horrible dream. Glancing to his left, he saw Alec still lying there, fast asleep. For a moment, he considered waking him up, telling him what had happened. He looked so peaceful, though, that it seemed wrong to wake him. Not when he could so easily handle this himself.

Getting out of bed, he grabbed his trousers and Alec's shirt by accident, dressing as quickly and quietly as possible. Anything to avoid waking Alec…

He went into the kitchen and pulled his phone out of his pocket. Yes, it was late, but surely Raphael would be up? With a sigh, he dialled his number.

"Hello?" Raphael answered straight away.

"Hello, Raphael. Is everything okay?" He heard a sigh on the other end.

"Yes, Magnus, of course. Simon's here, so naturally that's trying my patience, but that's about it." Magnus raised an eyebrow, wondering what was going on there. Last time he'd asked, Simon was staying in a shed next to the Jade Wolf, with only the protection of Luke Garroway to stop the wolves from tearing him apart.

"You don't have to have him there, you know. At this point you're choosing to spend time with him."

"No, I'm not. He's just… really hard to say no to now that I don't have any reason to be angry with him." Magnus sighed.

"Raphael, do we need to have a conversation about this? You know that it's perfectly okay if you're interested in him. Nobody's going to judge you for it."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Of course you don't." He smiled, hoping that everything would work out there. After all this time, Raphael deserved to be happy.

"Anyway, what are you doing up? It's past midnight, you never call this late."

"I had to make sure you were okay." He heard Raphael sigh.

"You had that dream again, didn't you?" He nodded, before remembering that Raphael couldn't see him.

"Yeah. Sorry I called so late, I didn't get to sleep until about half an hour ago."

"That's alright," he paused. "Look, why don't you make yourself some tea or something, maybe call that Shadowhunter you're so taken with at the moment. Just don't worry so much, I'm fine. Nothing's going to happen, not now that the Clave have Camille. There's no reason for them to bother us."

"First of all, his name is Alexander. Don't talk about him like he's some random Shadowhunter I liked the look of, there's more to it than that. Second, don't tell me not to worry about you. What kind of a father figure would I be if I never worried about you? At this point, I don't trust Aldertree further than I could throw him, and I'm not taking any chances." Raphael snorted. "What?"

"That's maybe not the best choice of words considering how far you could actually throw him." Magnus rolled his eyes.

"Very true. Maybe next time I'll think before I use phrases like that."

"Alright then. I'd better go, I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"Good night," Magnus said, hanging up. For a moment, he leaned on the kitchen counter, contemplating what to do next. Go back to bed and hope that Alec was still asleep? Magic up a cup of tea and then go back to bed? His thought were interrupted by footsteps behind him. He whipped round, a blue cloud of magic already in his hand.

"Hey, it's just me." Of course, he should've guessed. Alec was standing in the doorway, his hair messier than ever, wearing his jeans, a smile on his face.

"Alexander. You surprised me." It occurred to him just then that he still hadn't covered his mark. Taking advantage of the distance between him and Alec, he waved a hand in front of his eyes, fixing the glamour so that they looked normal again.

"You really didn't have to do that." Alec shook his head. "But you were gonna anyway, weren't you?"

"Yeah, I was." Alec took a step closer.

"Do you wanna tell me what's wrong?" His voice was soft, and his eyes were concerned, and in that moment, Magnus decided to tell him. He sat down on one of the stools next to the counter, and Alec went over to sit across from him.

"Alright. How much do you know about the current leadership of the New York vampire clan?" Alec frowned.

"I know that they got rid of Camille after she turned Clary's mundane friend, and that she got replaced by a guy called Raphael."

"Okay. I should probably take this moment to explain something. When I first started coming into my warlock powers, I didn't have anyone to help me figure things out. So, I decided that if I found another Downworlder in the same situation- whether they were a warlock, a vampire or a werewolf- I would do what I could for them. This included Raphael, who is still to this day like a son to me."

"I see." Alec nodded, and Magnus continued.

"You know how Aldertree said he was going to punish me somehow for not following orders while you were in that coma?"

"Yeah."

"I think he did that by torturing Raphael, burning crosses into his face."

"Angel, that's… that's messed up. He shouldn't be allowed to do that."

"Well, he did. I didn't see it happen, but I saw the scars, and Raphael told me what happened. Since then, I sometimes have dreams about it. It's the kind of thing that sticks with you, you know?" Alec reached out and took his hand.

"I'm sorry, Magnus. I wish I knew what to say, but I've got nothing. I can't even threaten to harm him, he's my boss. My hands are tied." Magnus smiled at him.

"Don't worry about it, okay? It's enough that you're here, and you're listening. You don't even have to get it. I just appreciate having you here." Alec smiled, and for a moment, Magnus thought he saw something in his eyes. He dismissed it, though. After all, he knew how Alexander felt, and that wasn't going to change, not overnight.

"I think I'm gonna go back to bed, unless there was anything else you wanted to talk about." Alec said eventually.

"Alright. I was going to make myself some tea first. Do you want anything?"

"Could I get a coffee?" A smile spread across his face. "Are you gonna use your magic to make it?"

"Yes, of course." He couldn't be bothered getting mugs out, putting the kettle on, or anything else. Instead, it was easier to just use magic.

"In that case, I'll have a coffee, decaf, with two sugars and a bit of milk, but not too much." Magnus smiled despite himself.

"Do you want one of those designs they do with the cream while I'm at it?"

"If it's not too much trouble." He rolled his eyes and snapped his fingers. The two drinks appeared in front of them, just the way they'd wanted them. Magnus's was in a World's Best Dad mug that Raphael had given him a couple of decades ago, while Alec's was in a plain blue mug.

"How's that?" Alec just stared for a moment.

"That's… wow, that's impressive!"

"I'm starting to think you're just with me for my magic." He was joking, of course. He'd been in that situation before, but he trusted Alexander enough to know he wasn't like that.

"No, of course not." Alec took a sip of his drink. "Angel, you've even got the temperature right. How is this possible?"

"Centuries of practice," he said simply. Alec smiled again, and Magnus thought he could get used to this, sitting together making each other smile. It felt so natural, he almost didn't want it to end.

"You know, I do think I'm falling in love with you." Alec set down his now-empty coffee cup. "Is that nuts?"

"Not at all." Finishing off the last of his tea, he stood up. "Alright, now I'm ready to go back to bed." Alec stood up too, putting his empty mug in the sink. They went back to the bedroom, got undressed again and got back into bed. They were facing each other this time, still holding hands.

"I wish you didn't cover up your mark," Alec whispered after a few minutes. "I've never seen it before, it's beautiful." Magnus looked at him for a moment, not sure how to respond. Then he shrugged, hoping to head off any big discussions about it.

"I'm glad you think so." He sighed. "We should really try and get some sleep. We can always talk about this in the morning, if you want."

"Yeah, that seems like a good idea." He moved a little closer. "Good night," he whispered.

"Good night, Alexander," Magnus replied, and closed his eyes.

The next morning, Magnus was almost surprised to find that Alec had wrapped his arms around him in his sleep. He smiled, debating whether or not to get up just yet, before deciding to stay where he was.

Unfortunately, though, Alec seemed to have some kind of aversion to sleeping in, because as soon as he opened his eyes, he was already sitting up.

"I'm going to make breakfast, if that's okay. Do you want anything?" Magnus considered it for a moment.

"Yeah. Can you make pancakes? I'm pretty sure I've got all the ingredients."

"I can try." He leaned down to kiss Magnus on the cheek, then got up and got dressed. "I'll come get you when they're done, okay?" He left the room, and after a moment, Magnus decided to get up too, getting dressed as well. He went back into the drawer of his bedside table and pulled out his make-up bag and a comb, taking both to the bathroom so that he could fix his hair and make-up. Later, he walked into the kitchen just as Alec finished up making the pancakes. He cleared his throat and Alec turned around.

Later, he walked into the kitchen just as Alec finished up making the pancakes. He cleared his throat and Alec turned around.

"I was just about to go get you," he explained, holding out a plate of pancakes.

"Well, now you don't need to." He went to sit down at the table, setting the plate down in front of him. Alec sat across from him, and for a few minutes they sat in silence, eating their breakfast.

Just as they were finishing up, Magnus heard a knock at the door.

"I'd better get that." He stood up and opened the door to find Simon standing there. "Hello, Simon, what's wrong?" He wondered how Simon had even got here, considering it was daytime now, but decided not to ask about it.

"I have a problem. Can I come in?"

"Yes, of course. Alec is here too, is that going to be an issue?"

"I don't think so." He walked inside, and sat down on the couch. Magnus went into the kitchen, where Alec was still sitting.

"Sorry, I've got to take care of this just now. I'll be back as soon as possible." Alec looked at him for a moment.

"Let me guess, you've taken Simon under your wing too now?"

"Yes." Alec sighed.

"You know, I don't mind you adopting stray Downworlders, it's honestly really sweet." He paused, nodding towards the main room. "Did you have to adopt this particular Downworlder, though?"

"Yes. Yes I did."

"Okay. Do you mind if I come through, see if there's anything I can do to help?"

"No, not at all." They went back through to the main room, taking a seat on the other couch. Magnus looked at Simon. "So, what seems to be the problem?" Simon shrugged.

"It's my mom. She wants to spend more time with me, but I don't know how that's going to work out now that I'm a vampire." Magnus thought about that. He wasn't sure what to tell Simon. "Should I tell her about that, or not?" Alec frowned.

"Mundanes really aren't supposed to know anything about the Shadow World. That includes knowing when their kids become Downworlders." Simon's shoulders slumped forward, his gaze dropping to the floor. "However, if you can make her promise not to tell anybody, I can pretend I didn't hear anything and nobody in the Clave needs to know."

"And what happens if she doesn't?" Simon asked, a hint of panic creeping into his voice. Alec glanced at Magnus, who sighed.

"I'd have to wipe any memories she had of you telling her. And that would be the best case scenario." Simon looked like he was about to ask what the worst case scenario would be, but thought better of it.

"Okay, deal. Should I mention that when I tell her?" Magnus nodded.

"It's best she understands the situation fully, that way you don't take any chances." Simon stood up.

"Alright, thanks for the advice." He headed for the door.

"Are you sure heading out just now is a good idea?" Magnus asked him just as Simon got the door open.

"It's really overcast today, I should be fine. I can always get a cab or something." Without another word, he left. Alec got to his feet.

"I should probably head off too. I'll see you later, okay?" Magnus walked to the door with him. "It was nice spending the night with you." Grabbing Magnus by the collar of his shirt, Alec kissed him deeply, then he was gone. Magnus went to sit back down on the couch. He missed Alec already, which was weird. Closing his eyes, he sighed. _What are you doing to me, Alexander Lightwood?_


	5. Chapter 5

**A.N-** **I've come up with a plan for this story now. I'm not sure how much longer it'll take to finish it, though. Hopefully you guys will enjoy it! Don't forget to read and review.**

Chapter Five

Izzy hadn't expected to be back at the coffee shop so soon. However, with how things had gone yesterday, she'd needed to get away from the Institute for a little bit. The fact that Magnus hadn't been working that day was a lucky coincidence. Just as well, really. She had a few questions for him regarding her brother.

"Alright, Bane, what happened last night?" She asked as soon as she sat down at their usual table.

"Hello, Isabelle, it's nice to see you too." She sighed deeply.

"Just answer the question. Something clearly happened, considering that Alec showed up at the Institute this morning with hickeys on his neck and glitter on his shirt." She paused. "I'm pretty sure I know what happened, I'd just like a confirmation." Magnus looked at her for a moment, trying to gauge just how annoyed she was.

"Alright, fine. I did sleep with Alexander last night. Sorry if that bothers you, but that's what happened."

"Are you kidding me? That doesn't bother me. It means Jace owes me twenty bucks, why would that bother me?" Magnus looked at her in confusion.

"Why would Jace owe you twenty bucks?"

"We had a bet about whether you guys would sleep together before him and Clary. He wanted to pull out after realising that Clary was his sister, but I wouldn't let him."

"That's a bit harsh." He sighed. "Speaking of Clary, how are you feeling about her now? Alexander told me what happened." She closed her eyes, looking down at the table.

"I don't know. I mean, it hurts, obviously, but at the same time it wasn't as simple as her turning me down outright. She said she needed time to think about what I said, so that could lead to anything."

"True." He paused to take a sip of his coffee. "I hope everything works out. You both deserve something good to happen to you, after everything that's been going on lately."

"Thanks." She smiled. "Thanks for agreeing to meet up with me today, by the way, seeing how we just met up yesterday." He shrugged.

"A lot happened yesterday. It's only fair that you should want to talk about it. Besides, I didn't have anything else to do. I've arranged to meet Simon later, so I can help explain his… situation to his mother. She needs to be aware that if she informs anyone else about it, she'll get her memories wiped. But that's not happening until this evening."

"Are you sure that's a good idea? If word got out..."

"It won't. If it does, though, we can deal with it. Honestly, this isn't that bad. I've seen worse. Hell, I've been through worse. This is nothing."

"I hope so. I like Simon, he seems nice. It would be a shame if something bad were to happen."

"We can cross that bridge when we get to it. I wouldn't worry, though, there are other places he can go if his mother rejects him. He's going to be fine." Izzy smiled.

"I hope so." She took a sip of coffee. "Anyway, let's talk about something else. How did last night go? "

"How much do you want to know?" She thought about that for a second.

"Anything apart from the sex itself." Magnus nodded.

"Alright. Well, can I start by asking why you never mentioned the fact that your brother makes really good pancakes?"

"I don't know, it just never came up."

"Well, now I know. Is there anything else I should know?"

"Not that I can think of, no." He smiled.

"Okay." He looked down at his coffee mug, which was now half full. "He also got me to make him a coffee using my magic. I think he was trying to challenge me, deliberately giving me a complex order. It wasn't anything I couldn't handle, though."

"I'm sure it wasn't." She smiled. "I take it everything went well, then?"

"Yes, it did. Sorry things didn't work out so well for you." She sighed.

"I think because I never got a straight yes or no answer, it's a little harder to deal with, because I'm not really sure how to process it all. Like, if it was one way or the other, I'd know how to respond. But this is like being stuck in limbo, I don't know what to do."

"I felt like that with Alexander for a while. It doesn't last, though. Eventually they come to a decision." She smiled.

"Yes, then make that decision public knowledge by making out with you in front of everybody at their own wedding."

"I'm pretty sure that's just your brother. I doubt Clary will be quite so dramatic. Of course, it's a bit early to say."

"I don't think anybody could top that. Honestly, that makes me a little more optimistic about coming out myself. Next to Alec, anything I say or do is going to seem pretty normal." He looked at her for a moment.

"So do you think you'll do it, then? Come out, I mean." She nodded.

"Of course. I just need the right opportunity." A thought struck her. "There's a family dinner in a couple of weeks, and Mom, Dad and Max will all be there. It's as good a time as any to say something." She paused, taking another sip of coffee. "Maybe you should come too. Give everyone a chance to get to know you. I don't think you've met Max yet, but I'm sure he won't mind you and Alec being a thing."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"Yeah. I mean, they've got to get used to the fact that you guys are together sooner or later, haven't they?"

"I suppose so. I don't want to cause any problems, I know how much family means to Alexander. I'd hate to ruin that for him." Isabelle looked at him for a moment, almost surprised by how genuine he sounded.

"Don't worry, okay? If you do that you'll just make things worse." She smiled. "Besides, the dinner isn't for another two weeks. There's plenty of time to figure out how we're going to go about this."

"You've got a point." He sighed. "It's been too long since I had a long-term relationship. Maybe I'm just a bit rusty."

"How far back are we talking? Like, as far back as when serious dating was called going steady, or..."

"Further back. Try Victorian times, at least." Izzy stared at him.

"Seriously?" She'd thought that it would've been more recent than that.

"Yes. I mean, don't get me wrong, there were more people in between that time, but nothing serious. Nobody I really wanted things to work out with. Not the way I do with Alexander." She nodded, ignoring the stab of jealousy that came with his words as she realised that Alec had someone now who loved him, in a way that she was yet to experience herself.

"You really love him, don't you?" She said it matter of factly, like it was obvious. It was, of course. The way he talked about Alec, the way he looked at him, it was obvious how he felt.

"Yeah." He looked at her thoughtfully. "Sorry, this probably isn't the best timing, considering what happened with Clary."

"No, it's okay. These things happen. There's been plenty of times when I've had someone and Alec hasn't. Granted, I don't think I've ever had anything like what you guys have, but still."

"You will, Isabelle. It just might take time." He smiled at her. "If it's any consolation to you, it's taken me over 300 years to even come close to finding the right person. You'll be fine." Setting down his empty coffee cup, he stood up.

"I think I'm going to order another coffee. Do you want one?" Izzy thought about it, then nodded. Finishing off her coffee, she said that she'd have another latte, and waited while he went to order the drinks. When he got back to their table, she took her drink off him and set it down on the table.

"Thanks," she said, sitting back down.

"No problem," he replied, taking his seat again too.

"Is there anything else you want to talk about?" she asked. For a moment, Magnus looked at her, before nodding.

"I'm not sure. Is there anything else I should know about your brother, before I continue dating him?"

"Not really. I mean, there are things I could tell you, but I'd rather you figure them out for yourself."

"That's fair. I mean, there's things I could tell you about Clary, just from watching her grow up, but it's probably better you find them out yourself." She stared at him.

"I didn't know you watched her grow up." Clary hadn't mentioned anything about that… unless she didn't remember, which might make sense considering that she'd had so many of her memories wiped.

"Sometimes Jocelyn needed a babysitter, and if Luke was busy with work, she'd call me. Of course, Clary doesn't remember anything about that, but I do. I've still got some pictures she drew, if you want proof."

"No, I believe you." She frowned. "That must've been weird, having to start over every so often as the new babysitter because she wouldn't remember meeting you before."

"Yeah, it was. Still, that's in the past now." He stood up again. "Maybe we should take this to go. I need to figure out how I'm going to approach telling Simon's mother what's happened." Izzy nodded, getting to her feet and going to the counter to see if she could get her latte to go.

"Good luck with that," she said when she got back to him.

"Thanks," he said, pushing open the door to the coffee shop. She followed him outside, feeling slightly better than she had when she'd first entered.


	6. Chapter 6

**A.N- Hey, guys. Sorry updating has been so all over the place with this fic. I'm going to try and get back into some kind of routine, but I'm not sure how that'll work out. Anyway, hope you guys enjoy this chapter. I know I'd usually have a chapter from Izzy's point of view here, but I thought this would help move her storyline along a little better, since I couldn't really think of anything else for her to do. Don't forget to read and review!**

Clary had been fixing herself some lunch when she heard the door open. Turning around, she was almost surprised to see Alec there.

"Alec. What's up?" She knew he probably wasn't here to talk to her, but it didn't hurt to ask.

"Fray, we need to talk." He walked over to where she was standing. She had a feeling she knew where this was going, and she wasn't looking forward to it.

"This is about Isabelle, isn't it?" He nodded.

"Look, I don't care if you aren't interested in dating her. I don't care if you're still pining after Jace. That's your business. I'd just appreciate it if you tell her that. When I spoke to her this morning, she said you hadn't told her one way or the other whether or not you were interested."

"That's because I didn't know, okay? Try putting yourself in my position for once. I'm still trying to get my head around the fact that I kissed my brother twice, and all of a sudden Izzy comes out and says she's got a crush on me. How would you feel if Magnus had been that blunt?" Alec raised an eyebrow.

"Fray, Magnus _was_ that blunt. We'd only known each other for maybe an hour and he was practically giving me his number."

"Okay, that's fair. Still doesn't change the fact that I don't have any idea what I'm doing when it comes to Izzy." Alec sighed.

"Alright, then. Let's sit down and try talking this through, see if we can figure something out." For a moment, Clary stared at him. She wasn't used to Alec wanting to talk to her, let alone trying to help her sort out her problems.

"Do you want anything to drink?" Alec asked, already taking a mug out of the cupboard for himself. Clary frowned at him.

"Why are you being nice to me?"

"Because I know what it's like to be confused like this." He shrugged. "Look, do you want a drink or not?" She nodded.

"Yeah, I'll have a coffee. Black, with lots of sugar." As Alec started making up the drinks, Clary noticed something on his neck. "Where did that come from?" she asked. He turned to look at her.

"Where did what come from?"

"That mark on your neck." Realising what she was referring to, Alec just shrugged again.

"I got it from Magnus," he said simply. Clary stared at him, realisation dawning on her. He rolled his eyes. "Yes, Fray, you heard that right. Now, are you gonna keep staring, or are you gonna let me finish making coffee?" She sighed, and nodded.

"Sorry." He went back to making coffee. Clary tried to imagine Magnus kissing someone hard enough to leave a mark like that, but almost immediately dismissed the thought. It was like trying to imagine someone in your family- an uncle, perhaps- doing something like that. You knew it probably happened, but it wasn't really a visual you wanted.

"So," Alec began, setting the mugs of coffee down on the table. "Where do you want to start?" He took a seat across from her.

"I don't know."

"You know, I'm starting to get the impression that you don't know a lot of things, Fray." She rolled her eyes. "Alright, I'll help. Why don't we start with Jace?"

"Do we have to?" she asked, really not sure she wanted to go into this right now.

"Yeah, we do. Unless you've got any better ideas." She couldn't think of anything else, so she shook her head.

"Okay, let's talk about Jace, then." He nodded and took a sip of his drink.

"Alright, let's start with something simple. Do you still like Jace?" Clary thought about that for a second, and nodded.

"Yeah, of course I do." In spite of everything, Jace had still been there for her these last few weeks, and she couldn't help liking him for that.

"Okay. So, let's move along to something a little more complicated. Are you still attracted to him? Like, if we could take a step back, and you weren't related, there was no war going on, and he asked you on a date, would you say yes?" That was a little harder to answer. If she was being completely honest, she wasn't sure if she would say yes. Once, the answer would've been obvious, but now she wasn't so sure.

"I don't know." He looked at her for a moment, and she sighed. "Okay, if you want the honest answer, no, I wouldn't. I mean, I've put all this effort into trying to see him as my brother, and now it's working. It would feel a bit weird now if he were to ask me out." Alec nodded, taking another sip of his coffee.

"Alright. Now that we've gotten that out the way, let's move on to Izzy." He had a process for this, she could see that now. Trying to get to a conclusion as soon as possible. Wanting to get to the point where he didn't have to play at being her big brother, where he could concentrate on his own siblings again.

"Again, do we have to?" He rolled his eyes.

"Yes, we do." She sighed, knowing there was no way around this. "Let's start with the obvious again, okay? Do you like Izzy?"

"Of course I do. I mean, what's not to like? She's kind, fun to be around, beautiful-" she stopped, realising what she'd just said. Looking up at Alec, though, he didn't seem too bothered by it.

"Good," he said, nodding again. "I guess that answers my next question, of whether or not you find her attractive." Clary was about to say that it didn't, but after a moment realised that yes, it did. She tried not to toss the word beautiful around much, preferring to save it for special occasions, but when it came to Isabelle, it was probably one of the best words she could possibly use. Her long, dark hair, her bright, kind smile… she was just beautiful.

"Yes, it does." She paused, looking up at him for a moment. "Does that answer all your questions, or have you got any more?" He thought about that.

"There's only one more thing. Don't worry, it's not too bad." He paused for effect. "Would you consider dating Isabelle, if she asked again?" Clary shook her head.

"I don't know. I mean, there's so much going on just now, I don't know if I'm ready to enter into a relationship just now. What if something happened to her? I've already got enough people to worry about, I don't want any more." Alec sighed.

"Okay, Fray, whatever you say. Here's some advice, though. Don't do anything you'll regret. If something did happen to Izzy, maybe you should make the most of the time you've got. There's always going to be battles to fight. That's just what being a Shadowhunter is. If you're always putting off having a relationship because you're worried about something happening to them, you're never going to be with anyone. Believe me, you'll feel worse if you don't say anything."

"Maybe you're right." She shook her head. "I'll have to think about it, though. It's a lot to process all at once." Alec nodded, and stood up.

"So, are we done now? Can I go back to not talking to you again?" She nodded, and he looked relieved. "Thank the Angel, I wasn't sure how much more of that I could take."

"I don't know, I thought we made a real breakthrough. Maybe that's just me, though."

"Yes, it probably is." With that, he left the room, taking his coffee with him. Clary sighed, her head swimming with thoughts of Isabelle. Standing up, she decided that the best way to clear her mind would be to draw, which she hadn't done since Izzy spoke to her yesterday.


	7. Chapter 7

A.N- I'm sorry this chapter took so long. I got stuck part way through, and it took me a while to get past the block. Hopefully it won't take me as long to get chapter eight up. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, don't forget to read and review!

Chapter Seven

"Is it really necessary to use the flashlight on your phone?" Magnus asked Simon as they walked down the street towards his house.

"Says the guy wearing expensive clothes and jewellery at night in Brooklyn. I don't know about you, but I'm not taking any chances."

"Simon, no offence, but with our combined abilities and the fact that your house is literally a few paces away now, the odds of us getting mugged are slim to none. Not only that, but you probably aren't helping matters by holding your phone out where everybody can see it." Simon sighed and put his phone away. They got to his gate, and Simon hesitated for a moment.

"I'm not sure I can do this. I mean. What if she turns me away? I don't think I could deal with that." Magnus wanted to roll his eyes. Really? That was the worst scenario Simon could see here? He shook his head, and opened the gate.

"Look, you're as well coming in and getting this over with. We can deal with whatever happens when it happens, but there's no point standing around here waiting for the sun to rise, so come on." Reluctantly, Simon followed him. When they got to the door, Magnus stepped aside to let Simon knock.

"Maybe we should come back tomorrow. I don't think I can do this today." Okay, that was it. Stepping up onto the doorstep beside Simon, Magnus knocked twice.

"Who is it?" a voice from within the house called. Magnus turned to Simon, who was glaring at him.

"Asshole," he muttered, then opened the door. "Mom, it's me, Simon." At his words, another door opened down the hall, and a woman stepped out.

"Simon!" She walked to the front door to greet them. Simon stepped forward and hugged her tightly. Magnus looked away quickly, letting them have their moment. However, he couldn't stay out of things forever, as Simon's mother noticed him standing there. "Who's this?" she asked her son.

"My name's Magnus Bane, I'm a friend of Simon's." She looked at him curiously. "May we come in?"

"Yes, of course." She stepped aside to let them through. As they made their way into the house, Simon leaned over and whispered to Magnus.

"What would've happened if she hadn't said that?"

"I'd have been able to come in, but you wouldn't have."

"Wait, so that whole Let the Right One In thing is true?"

"If by that you mean that vampires can't enter a house unless they're invited, then yes." Simon stared at him.

"Cool!"

"I don't know if cool is the word I'd use, but whatever works for you." Simon's mother turned to look at them.

"What are you two whispering about?" Magnus considered telling her, but decided it would be better if she was sitting down.

"Nothing." They entered the living room, and Simon's mother gestured for them to sit down on the couch.

"Would either of you like something to drink?" Simon pulled a flask out of his bag.

"No thanks, Mom, I've brought my own." She looked at Magnus.

"Do you have any wine?" Simon frowned at him.

"Dude, we don't have any alcohol here. Mom gets a bottle of wine so that we can have a glass on a Friday night, but that's it." He paused. "Isn't that right, Mom?"

"Yes, dear. Sorry, Magnus. Is there anything else I can get you?" He smiled politely at her.

"A cup of tea, thanks. A little bit of milk, no sugar." She nodded.

"Alright." She left the room. Simon's hands were trembling, and Magnus decided to say something as a way of diffusing the tension.

"So, I heard you went to see Raphael last night." Simon's head snapped up and he blinked in surprise.

"How did you find out about that?"

"Raphael mentioned it to me. We go pretty far back, and when I called last night he said you were with him."

"Oh." He frowned. "He didn't say anything else, did he?"

"No. Why, was there anything else happening?"

"No, of course not. Why would there be?" Magnus sighed. What was it with this generation and covering up their feelings? Come to think of it, what was it with most generations and covering up their feelings?

"Really?" he asked. Simon was about to reply when his mother came back into the room, carrying a cup of tea and a mug of coffee. She sat down across from them.

"So, how did you two meet?" Magnus glanced at Simon, seeing the uncertainty and confusion on his face. Before he could attempt an explanation, Magnus had an idea.

"I knew his friend Clary when she was younger, and she ended up introducing us."

"I had a feeling Clary fit into this. You know, there was this man Jocelyn sometimes got to babysit Clary when she and Luke were working. His name was Magnus, and you sound just like him." She paused. "At first I thought you might be the same person, but I realised it was probably just a coincidence."

"No, it isn't." She stared blankly at him. "Mrs Lewis, this might actually be a good opportunity to say that we've got something pretty important to tell you. Well, actually Simon does. I'm just here for moral support and to explain a couple of extra points."

"What is it? You're not getting engaged, are you? I thought we agreed you were too young to be thinking about that." Simon looked like he wanted to laugh.

"No, Mom, it's nothing like that. It might actually be worse, though." He took a deep breath. "Mom, I'm a vampire." He exhaled, and looked at his mother. A few seconds passed, and she burst into laughter.

"That's a good one, Simon. Where did you come up with that?" Magnus shook his head.

"Mrs Lewis, he's being serious. Look, I know this sounds crazy, but it's true. Vampires, werewolves, warlocks, all those things you thought didn't exist outside of books and movies, they're all real. Simon became part of that world by mistake, thanks to a vampire I used to know, who quite literally got her teeth into him." He paused. "I know this is a lot to take in. But believe me, we aren't making this up."

"So what are you, then? Are you a vampire too?" Her eyes were full of disbelief, but she seemed to be just about holding it together.

"No, I'm a warlock. I've known a few vampires over the years, though." Her eyes widened, and she shook her head quickly.

"Okay, okay. Can either of you prove this? Have you got any way to prove that what you're saying is real?" Magnus nodded and turned to Simon.

"You show her your fangs, I'll show her my demon mark, and we'll go from there," he whispered. Simon nodded, and turned to look at his mother. Opening his mouth, he revealed his sharp fangs. His mother reached forward to touch them.

"Careful, they're venomous," Magnus warned. She pulled her hand away.

"How venomous? Would they kill you? Is that how Simon got like this?"

"Not exactly," Simon explained. "I got bitten once, and it just gave me some really weird side effects. Then I went to try and figure out what was going on, and I got bitten again. That time I got drained. The only reason I'm still here is that I got brought back."

"Which is what I meant when I said it was an accident that Simon got pulled into this world," Magnus added. Mrs Lewis turned to look at him.

"What about you, then? Where's your proof?" Magnus took a deep breath and dropped the glamour on his eyes.

"All warlocks are half demon, meaning we all have a demon mark of some kind. This is what mine looks like," he explained. She was staring, and it was starting to make him uncomfortable. Quickly, he waved his hand in front of his eyes to cover up his mark again.

"So you were born like that?" He nodded. A sympathetic look crossed her face- the kind that you'd give someone who was born with a deformity or disability, the kind he'd always hated.

"Yes." He really hoped that she wouldn't ask any more questions about this. Aside from the fact that he didn't like talking about it, this whole thing was about Simon, and he didn't want to derail that.

"Okay. Okay. Is there anything else I should know?" Simon nodded.

"Yeah. You have to keep this a secret, otherwise Magnus will have to wipe your memories of this conversation, and apparently that's the best case scenario." She stared at the two of them.

"Is that true?" This question seemed to be directed at Magnus.

"Yes, it is. I know that must sound like a threat, and I apologise for that, but that's the situation. As long as nobody else finds out about Simon being a vampire, then nothing else needs to happen."

"Alright." She got to her feet. "If you two don't mind, I think I'm going to go upstairs. I need to process all this." Simon nodded.

"Sure, Mom, that's fine. I'll show Magnus out once he's finished his drink." She nodded, and left the room. Once she left, Magnus picked up the cup of tea. He snapped his fingers.

"What was that for?" Simon asked curiously.

"I always say no sugar, since people add too much. So, I take care of that part myself."

"Why do you have to have so little, though? I mean, I'm not judging, I'm just curious."

"It's an old habit left over from rationing. We only had a limited supply of everything, so I cut back as much as I could without cutting that stuff out completely. I got used to it, and I never went back."

"I see." He smiled. "Raphael doesn't take sugar in his tea either, but that's because he gave it up one year for Lent." Magnus raised an eyebrow.

"And you know this how?" Simon looked down at his hands, a faint blush spreading across his face.

"I don't know, I was over at the Hotel once and it just came up." Magnus rolled his eyes, and finished off his tea.

"Simon, if there's something going on between you two, you don't need to hide it. You can tell me, alright?" At that point, Simon noticed the empty cup of tea.

"Hey, why don't I try reading your tea leaves?" Magnus sighed, knowing he should've expected Simon to change the subject somehow. However, he decided to humour him just this once.

"Do you even know how to do that?" Ignoring the obvious fact that the tea had been made with a tea bag rather than tea leaves, he was sure Simon had no experience in anything like this.

"No, but how hard can it be?" Magnus shrugged.

"Well, you're welcome to try." He handed the cup over, and Simon peered into it.

"Okay, so I'm seeing a sort of wonky cross, which is trials and suffering, and that there looks like the sun, and that's happiness. So, you're gonna suffer, but you're gonna be happy about it."

Magnus wasn't really sure what to say to that. On the one hand, it was a surprisingly accurate prediction- especially now that he was with Alec. However, he recognised where Simon had gotten it from, so that was the part he decided to focus on.

"That's a Harry Potter reference, isn't it?" Simon frowned.

"How did you know?"

"Raphael made me watch the movies as a joke. So I retaliated by making him watch Twilight when it came out."

"I bet he appreciated that." Simon stood up. "Come on, I'll show you out." He made his way to the door, Magnus following.

"Do you think your mother will be alright?" Simon shrugged.

"It's hard to say just now, but I think she will. She just needs time." He opened the door. "Mind if I walk with you down the street for a bit? There's something I wanted to ask you."

"Alright." They left the house, but it wasn't until they'd closed the gate behind them that Simon started talking.

"I should probably say, first off, that something did happen with Raphael the other day." He pulled down the collar of his shirt a little to reveal the fresh puncture wounds on his neck.

"What happened?" He knew it was kind of obvious, but it couldn't hurt to make sure.

"We got a little drunk yesterday, and, well, things kinda escalated. It doesn't mean anything, though. It was just a one time thing." Magnus sighed. He should've guessed something like this would happen.

"Did you want it to mean anything?" Simon thought about it for a moment, then nodded.

"Yeah, I did. It was weird, I didn't expect it to feel as right as it did. I mean, I haven't really done anything like that with a guy before. I've wanted to at times, don't get me wrong, but it's just never- I've never really had a chance, you know?" Magnus nodded in a knowing way.

"Yes, I know. I can remember the first boy I was with in that sense. It was all very hush hush then. You didn't talk about it, not if you valued your life. It's so much easier these days, whether you're aware of it or not. I know it's not perfect, but it's a lot better than it used to be." Simon nodded, not saying anything for a moment.

"What should I do?" he asked eventually. "About Raphael, I mean."

"Talk to him," Magnus said simply. "Try and sort out your feelings for each other, and if something happens as a result, then that's great. Either way, at least you'll know." By this point, they'd reached the end of the street. "Now, if you don't mind, I'll portal myself the rest of the way. I'll see you around, Simon." He summoned a portal, glad in that moment that he hadn't been drinking. Drunk portal travel could be messy, even for him.

"Alright, bye. Thanks for helping me out tonight, I owe you one." For a moment, Magnus just blinked at him, not used to being thanked. Then, he recovered himself.

"No problem, Simon. Glad I could help." With that, he entered the portal, letting it take him straight home.


	8. Chapter 8

**A.N- Hey, guys. Apologies once again for how all over the place this has been. I will try to get chapter nine done by the end of this week, but I can't make any promises. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this next chapter. I own nothing.**

Chapter Eight

After the meeting with Simon's mother, the rest of the week flew by. For Magnus, it was a blur of work during the day, and evenings spent with Alec. In the last week alone, he'd learned that Alec liked going to see horror movies to laugh at what mundanes considered scary, was surprisingly bad at pool and was saving up for a motorbike.

Before he knew it, he was back at the coffee shop. This time, Isabelle was already there.

"Hey," he said, grabbing a seat next to her once he'd ordered his drink. It was coffee this week- although, that was a pretty basic description. Technically speaking it was a latte, with enough caramel shots, sugar and cream to be, as Raphael liked to call it, diabetes in a cup. Well, it was only fair. Coffee was so bitter on its own, even more so than tea. And he'd started drinking coffee quite recently, too, at a point where you could have all these extra things without worrying about wasting limited resources.

"Hi," she replied. "How've you been?" she asked, once he'd sat down. She seemed to be doing alright, but it was hard to tell. He wondered if she'd managed to get anywhere with Clary, then realized that if she had, he would've heard about it by now.

"I'm fine." He smiled at her, hoping to make her feel a little better about her situation. "What about you?" She shrugged.

"I'm okay." She looked down at the table, shifting a little in her seat.

"Still no progress with Clary?" She shook her head, a disappointed look flitting across her face.

"Well, I'd give it maybe a couple more days, then rethink your options."

"Alright." She sighed and was about to pick up her coffee cup when her phone rang. "Sorry, let me get that." She pulled out her phone. "Hey, Alec, what's up?" Magnus watched as the smile faded from her face. He wondered what was happening. "Hang on, I'll ask him." She pulled the phone away from her ear a little and covered the mouthpiece. "Alec's ran into some demons, and he needs back-up. Could you portal me there?" Magnus stood up.

"I can do you one better than that. I can go with you and we'll both help Alexander together." Isabelle nodded.

"Okay, that's fine. I'll go pay for our drinks, and we'll go."

"Alright." She walked to the counter, and Magnus started pacing a little. His mind raced, and blue sparks flashed from his shaking hands. Alec was in a fight. He might be injured, he might be in pain. Magnus closed his eyes, trying to calm his breathing. This is why you shouldn't get too close to shadowhunters, he thought. Doing reckless things like this were second nature to them.

"Hey, Magnus, are you okay?" Isabelle asked. He shook his head.

"No, not really. I just want to get to Alec and make sure that he's okay."

"I know. Let's get that portal up and we'll go." Quickly, they left the coffee shop and Magnus summoned a portal. The two of them practically ran through it.

When they got there, Alec was standing in a dark alley, demon guts already staining his face and clothes. There must've been at least a dozen demons there, and it was clearly all Alec could do to hold them back. Immediately, Magnus shot a ball of magic into the crowd of demons. Alec ducked out of the way and turned his head to look at the two of them for a second.

"Thanks," he muttered, before stabbing another demon with his seraph blade.

From there, there was no time to think. There was just the three of them, and the demons. A mess of ichor and seraph blades, of arrows and silver whip and attack spell after attack spell.

They were down to maybe six or seven demons when it happened. Magnus came face to face with one of the remaining demons. He prepared to launch another attack spell, but before he got the chance the creature sunk its claws into him. Pain shot through his shoulder, and he sank to the ground.

"Magnus!" He heard Alec yell. Clutching at his shoulder, he watched as an arrow hit the demon, and it disintegrated. Looking up, he saw Alec standing there, bow drawn, shoulders tense, a look of cold fury on his face. He wondered if that would be the end of it, but it wasn't. One by one, Alec launched arrow after arrow, wiping out demon after demon. It was like something had taken over him, and it wasn't until the final demon had fallen that he finally stopped.

For a moment, he just stood there, catching his breath. Then he practically flew over to Magnus, pulling him close.

"Hey, it's okay, I've got you." He pulled out his stele, and set it down on the ground beside them. "Let me see your shoulder, alright?" Magnus nodded, and Alec slowly, carefully removed his black jacket and unbuttoned his shirt enough to expose the injury. He picked up his stele, and was about to draw an iratze with it when Magnus reached out a hand to stop him.

"Don't." Alec blinked at him.

"Why not?"

"Because it won't work." He sighed. "Or did you forget I'm not like you? That I can't take runes?" Alec stared at him for a moment.

"Shit, you're right. Sorry, I keep forgetting about that. Is there anything I can do for you instead?" Magnus thought about that for a moment. He looked at his hand, at the blood that now stained his fingers. A healing spell came to mind- one that would numb the pain temporarily and stop the bleeding. He wasn't sure if he would have the strength to pull it off, though. Pressing one hand against his shoulder, he held the other out to Alec, who took it immediately.

"I could use your strength, so I can do this spell. It won't heal the injury, but it'll take the pain away, so we can at least get out of here." Alec nodded, and Magnus started the spell, pulling on Alec's strength as he did so. There wasn't much to work with, but there was just about enough. When he was done, he looked up into Alec's hazel eyes, checking for any obvious signs of exhaustion. However, he seemed to be doing okay for now.

"Did that work?" he asked, and on that note, Magnus removed his hand from his shoulder. Sure enough, the bleeding had stopped, and he couldn't feel any pain. Knowing the effects were only temporary, he moved quickly, fixing his shirt and shrugging his jacket back on. Slowly, clumsily, Alec helped him to his feet. At that moment, Isabelle spoke up.

"Um, guys, sorry to interrupt, but do you think we could go?" Magnus nodded and was about to summon a portal when Alec grabbed his arm.

"I think you've done enough for today. Let's get a cab instead, alright?" Isabelle nodded.

"That's not a bad idea, actually. I'll ride with you guys if that's okay. I'll go back to the Institute, and call you guys later." Together, the three of them started to walk out of the alley. As they did, Magnus noted that Isabelle somehow hadn't managed to get any dirt on her. Aside from a little demon guts in her hair, she was pretty much unscathed.

"How did she manage to come out of this looking so clean?" he whispered to Alec, who shrugged.

"I asked her that once. She said it's because she's pure at heart, that it somehow repels the dirt." Magnus smiled at that, and reached for Alec's hand. Somehow it made him feel stronger.

When they got into the cab, it was all Magnus could do not to fall asleep. This was made even trickier when Alec put an arm around him and pulled him close again. He wanted to go home… but sitting here, with Alec holding him, it was like he already was.

By the time they did make it to his apartment- they'd already dropped Isabelle off at the Institute- Magnus felt a little better. Still not great, but good enough to get up the stairs and into his loft. Shortly after entering, he went to one of the couches in the main room and collapsed onto it. Alec came over to sit beside him.

"Are you okay?" Magnus shrugged.

"I will be, I just need to rest." Alec nodded, and stood up.

"Well, in that case, I'm going to go take a shower, if that's okay. You can stay here and rest if you want." Under any other circumstances, Magnus might've said something. He might've suggested that they shower together, or something. As it was, he doubted that he'd have the strength for that, so he just nodded and let Alec go.

After a couple of minutes or so, he decided to get up, even if it was just to change into a clean shirt. Stumbling to his feet, he made his way towards his room. He rested a hand on the wall to steady himself, and tried to remind himself that things could be worse. He could always have used more magic, made himself more worn out. Really, this was nothing.

When he got back into the living room, he decided to call Isabelle. While he did so, he decided to look for a potion. It would give him the energy he needed to carry out another spell, one that would take away any scarring left from the injury.

As he was looking for the potion, his phone went. Pulling it out, he set it down on the table beside him and put it on speaker.

"Hey, it's me, Isabelle," the voice on the other end rang out.

"Isabelle, you're on speaker. What's up?"

"Did you guys make it back okay?"

"Yes, we did." He pulled out a bottle, and checked the label. Sleeping draft. He sighed and put it back. That was only for emergencies.

"Is Alec there, can I talk to him?" Without thinking, he shook his head.

"No, he's in the shower, trying to get all that demon blood off him." For a moment, Isabelle was silent. Then she said, in an almost surprised tone,

"Alec's where?"

"In the shower." Magnus frowned. "Why, is that not normal for him?" Isabelle sighed, and Magnus wondered if she was shaking her head.

"Not really, no. Alec will never shower at someone else's place if he can avoid it- I think he's afraid they'll do something, you know? You must mean a lot to him if he's putting that kind of trust in you- especially since you're not family." Magnus smiled at that information- it felt nice to be this trusted. Different, somehow.

"Is that so?" He paused. "Look, I'd love to chat more, but I need to find this potion, so I can finish fixing my shoulder. I'll talk to you tomorrow, though, alright?"

"Alright, that's fine. Tell Alec I said hi." With that, she hung up, and Magnus went back to looking for the potion. This would be a really bad time for that healing spell to wear off, he thought as he reached up for the potion, which appeared to be on a shelf just out of reach. Normally, this wouldn't be an issue- that was what levitation spells were for, after all. Today, however, this didn't seem to be an option.

"Here, let me get that." Magnus almost jumped in surprise. He'd been so focussed on trying to get the potion down that he hadn't noticed that Alec had come back into the room. Turning to face him, Magnus could see that whilst his hair was still a bit damp, his black t-shirt was clean. Dry, but clean. Magnus suspected a rune had been used. From the way Alec was looking at him, Magnus also suspected that he'd noticed the unfortunate truth- that even the glamour on his eyes was too much effort to keep up.

"Sorry," he muttered, looking anywhere but at Alec- he could save that for when he could put the glamour back up. Stepping aside, he let Alec stand beside him at the potions cabinet. Alec sighed and shook his head slightly.

"Which one are you looking for?" he asked, looking up at the collection of bottles and jars. "And you don't need to hide from me, I've told you that already." Magnus sighed and looked up at Alec properly.

"It's the orange one on the top shelf," he said, another attempt at avoiding any conversations about his demon mark. Alec found the bottle and handed it to him.

"What's that for, if you don't mind me asking?"

"It's for energy. It'll let me finish up fixing my shoulder, so there's no scars or anything." Alec frowned.

"I don't think you should be doing anything like that until you've had a proper rest, even with a potion in you. Especially one like that- it looks like it has caffeine or something in it." He paused, a serious expression crossing his face. "It doesn't, though, does it?"

"It's got… similar things. It works like an energy drink, or maybe an espresso. I don't know, it's been a while since I- hey!" Alec had plucked the bottle out of his hand while he was talking.

"In that case, you're probably better off giving it a miss tonight and getting some sleep instead." He smiled, setting the potion back on a different shelf- one a little lower down. Magnus was tempted to reach for it, but he decided against it. Alec was trusting him again, and he valued that too much to risk doing something to destroy it.

"Maybe I don't want to go to sleep just yet." Without realising it, he found he was holding his breath. He found he was waiting for Alec to say that he didn't care what Magnus wanted, that it didn't matter.

"Then I'll sit with you until you do fall asleep, whenever that ends up being. It's alright." Oh. He hadn't been expecting that response. He sighed, wondering when the bar for long-term relationships had gotten so low. After all, Alec probably wasn't putting so much thought into this.

Before he could stop himself, he leaned in and kissed Alec on the lips. After a moment, Alec pulled away.

"What was that for?" he whispered.

"For being one of the best things to happen to me in a long time." Alec smiled, and leaned in to kiss him back.

"That's for the same reason, in case you were wondering," he breathed as he broke the kiss.

In that moment, Magnus wished he could tell Alec that he loved him again. But they were doing so well. No sense in scaring him off like he had last time, with things that he obviously didn't want to hear.

Later, as they sat on the couch, Alec with his arm wrapped around Magnus's shoulders, Magnus decided to send Izzy a text.

Text: (To Isabelle) Sorry we had to cut our meeting short. I'll see you next week?

After a couple of minutes, he got a reply.

Text: (To Magnus) It's cool. And no, we can't. Family dinner next week, remember? Let me know if you're coming

Magnus sighed and switched off his phone. That was certainly going to be fun, but he could deal with that later. No point causing himself any more stress, after all.


	9. Chapter 9

**A.N- Okay, once again I'm sorry this took so long. I had envisioned getting this finished by the time 2b started, but unfortunately, things haven't worked out that way. I already have chapters ten and eleven plotted out, and a good chunk of chapter ten already written, so hopefully, they won't take too long. However, once again things might not work out like that. We'll see.**

 **Also, the movie Isabelle describes in this chapter is indeed Mrs Doubtfire, in case it wasn't obvious. I own neither that nor the characters.**

Chapter Nine

It had been a couple of days since the demon attack. Magnus appeared to have recovered his strength, and Isabelle now sat in the kitchen with her brother, eating lunch and discussing the family dinner coming up on Saturday.

"I'm still not sure this is a good idea, Iz. You know how Mom feels about him. I really don't think-" Izzy sighed.

"Alec, I'm sure everything's going to be fine. It's only one night, after all. I'm sure we can all manage one night. I would ask you not to worry, but there's not much point in that, is there? You will worry whether I say anything or not." He shrugged and nodded.

"Yeah, I will." It was at this point that Clary entered the kitchen.

"Could I talk to Izzy for a moment?" Isabelle glanced at Alec, who nodded. He got to his feet and headed for the door.

"I'll leave you two alone," he said, nodding to Clary. "Remember what we talked about, Fray." Clary nodded, back at him, and Isabelle looked between them in confusion. What was going on there? Once Alec left, Clary went over to sit across from Isabelle at the kitchen table.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" she asked, attempting to sound nonchalant.

"I heard about that demon fight the other day. The one you, Alec and Magnus got into." Isabelle nodded.

"Yeah, what about it?"

"I know you all got out okay, more or less, but it got me thinking. What about next time? What if next time you aren't so lucky?" she sighed. "I guess what I'm trying to say, is that it made me realise how important it is to tell you how I feel before it's too late." Isabelle blinked at her for a moment.

"What are you saying? Do you- Are you-" She was almost afraid to finish a sentence, in case she'd gotten the wrong impression. Nervously, she looked over at Clary, trying to work out what she was thinking. Irritatingly enough, though, she couldn't figure it out.

"Yeah, I do. I like you, Isabelle. I should've told you earlier, but I could never see an opportunity until today." That was all she needed to say. Quickly, Isabelle hopped off her seat and made her way round to where Clary was sitting. Clary hopped down too, even if it meant it was now obvious that she was shorter than Isabelle.

"Are you being completely serious? You want to start a relationship?"

"Yes, Izzy. Absolutely yes." Isabelle stared at her for a moment, before bending her head down a little and kissing Clary lightly on the lips.

At least, she'd meant for it to just be a light kiss. It didn't turn out quite like that, though. Not that Isabelle was complaining, as she tangled her fingers in Clary's long red hair. She was about to deepen the kiss further when she heard a cough behind her. Pulling away, she was surprised and slightly relieved to see Alec there.

"Alec, what's up?" She asked, not quite able to look at him. He shrugged.

"I came back to get my sandwich, and I thought you guys were done talking. I couldn't hear any voices or anything." He paused. "While I'm here, though, and seeing how things seem to be going here, I wanted to make a suggestion. Izzy, why don't we both bring a guest to this family dinner? I can bring Magnus, and you can bring Clary." He turned to Clary. "If you're up for that, Fray." For a moment, Clary was quiet. Then she nodded.

"I don't see why not. Maybe it'll be fun." Alec nodded in agreement.

"Cool. I'll go tell Magnus, then talk to Mom. Hopefully, she won't object." Isabelle frowned.

"Could you not tell Mom about me and Clary? I kinda want to do that myself."

"Yeah, that's no problem." Grabbing his sandwich off the table, he left the room. Isabelle took a seat at the table again, Clary once again taking the seat across from her.

"I don't think this is a good idea." Isabelle began. "I thought it would be at first, but now that I've had some time to think about it, I'm not so sure." The thought of showing up at the Lightwood family dinner with the daughter of Valentine Morgenstern on her arm- and of coming out at the same time- was suddenly much more frightening than she'd first thought it would be.

"What do you mean?" Clary asked. "What's not a good idea?"

"Going to this family dinner together. I mean, I thought it would be a good chance to come out, but maybe I'm wrong. Maybe I've got this completely wrong."

"Iz," Clary said, and Isabelle looked at her properly for a moment. "I know I'm not an expert on this kind of thing, and I don't know your family that well, but to be honest, I think we should at the very least give this a try. It is just one night, after all." Isabelle stared at her.

"How are you so calm about this? You've met my mother. You saw what happened at the wedding. What makes you think this'll be any different? Aren't you the slightest bit nervous?"

"I am, actually. I don't even know what I'd do at a regular dinner party, let alone a Shadowhunter dinner party. I'm just trying to look on the bright side here, because if I dwell too much on how scared I am I won't be able to do it. To be honest, the thought of you having to show up alone to this party is enough to make me want to go, because I don't want you to have to go through that." Isabelle wasn't sure what to say, and part of her wondered if she could get away with just kissing Clary again. However, she could always do that later, so instead, she nodded.

"I guess that's fair enough." Clary smiled at her.

"So, are we agreed? Will we go together? Cause I kinda want to go now, to be honest." Isabelle nodded again.

"Yeah, of course. It's not a great first date, I'm sorry for that, but hopefully, it'll do."

"We can have a proper first date another time, but for now this is fine." Isabelle thought of Alec for a moment, of how long he'd had to wait to get his first date with Magnus. Hopefully, this wouldn't take anywhere near that long.

"Does next weekend sound alright to you?" Clary nodded, and Isabelle wondered if she would have to reschedule her coffee date with Magnus or if they could work around it. It was probably best if they did reschedule- she really didn't have the energy to try being in two places at once. This wasn't like that mundane movie Simon had told her to watch, with the guy who dressed up as his kids' babysitter and ended up trying to be two people in two places at once. She smiled, dismissing that thought. She was going to have to watch that movie at some point, but now wasn't the time.

"So, it's a date." Isabelle smiled, hopping down from the stool again. She made her way round to where Clary was sitting, kissed her briefly and then headed towards the door. "I'll see you later, alright?" And with that, she left the room, feeling like she was walking on air.


	10. Chapter 10

**A.N- Alright, guys, I'm sorry it took me a while to get this up. As you can see, this is a super long chapter, and it took me a while to get it done, especially as I got stuck at a couple of parts. Also, I change perspective a couple of times in this chapter. I may do that in other chapters of this story, but if I do I promise I will clearly mark where each new perspective begins. Finally, I'm sorry if this chapter is a bit darker than usual. I promise the next one will be lighter, and that it'll come sooner.**

Chapter Ten

Magnus

Magnus wasn't sure how long he'd been lying here in the dark, trying to get to sleep. He wished Alec was here. It had been maybe ten days since he'd first slept with him, and for at least half of them he'd ended up calling Alec over.

Once or twice, they'd had sex, but most of the time they just slept. It was the nightmares that prompted him to call Alec, more often than not. Sometimes, he'd talk to Alec about them, sometimes he wouldn't, it depended on how bad they got. Really, it was just nice not to be on his own.

With a sigh, he turned over again and closed his eyes, making one more attempt at sleep.

 _ _He was back in Aldertree's office again. This time, though, something was different. It wasn't Raphael tied to the chair, it was Camille.__

 _ _"This is all your fault," she hissed. "Look at what you've done to me, you've ruined everything!" He wasn't sure how he found the strength to speak, but he did.__

 _ _"I was only doing what I had to do. They tortured Raphael, I couldn't risk anything like that happening again. I'm sorry, but I have to put my family first." He took a deep breath. "And you did this to yourself. I just helped things along a little."__

 _ _"You didn't__ have __to do anything. Why is Raphael so important to you, anyway? Why would you take away all that time with me for the handful of decades you've known him? It doesn't make any sense." Magnus closed his eyes.__

 _ _"For someone with so many children, you'd think you'd have a better understanding of what being a parent is like." Normally, he wouldn't dream of talking to her like this, but right now he was feeling brave. Deep down, he knew it would be very different if she wasn't restrained, but he didn't want to focus on that just now.__

 _ _"What did you just say to me?" He shivered slightly under her frosty glare, and struggled to remain standing straight.__

 _ _"You heard me." He could just make out the crack in his voice- and he'd been doing so well, too.__

 _ _"You've got a lot of nerve talking to me like that." She smiled coldly. "It's probably all just talk, though. You're too much of a coward to really be a treat to me."__

 _ _He turned away from her, closing his eyes. It always came back to this, whenever he tried to stand up to her, whenever he tried to leave. She would always say he was too much of a coward to really do it.__

 _ _"Shut up," he said, so quietly he was surprised she heard him.__

 _ _"Or what?" she hissed. "What's the matter? Can't stand to hear the truth? I mean, you know I'm right. I've known you were a coward since the day I met you- the mere fact you were about to take the coward's escape route said it all." In that moment, he hated her. She was always bringing up that day, whether as a way of putting him down or a way of keeping him in place.__

 _ _"Will you shut up?" He snapped, knowing full well that she wouldn't.__

 _ _Honestly, why are you even still here? Are you really that pathetic that you can't wake up from your own damn dream? Even now, you can't manage without me. Come her__ _ _e__ _ _," she paused. "And put the glamour back up on your eyes. You know I can't stand them." He raised a hand to do as she'd asked, but dropped it.__

 _ _Instead, he walked towards her. Somehow, impossible as it was, she'd managed to free her wrists. Grabbing hold of his arm, she roughly pushed back his sleeve. Magnus could hear his heart pounding in his ears, as he dreaded what she was about to do.__

 _ _Leaning down so that he could feel her long hair brushing his skin, she sank her teeth into his wrist…__

He sat up, shaking all over. Where had that come from? He hadn't thought about Camille- __really__ thought about her- in so long. Maybe it was guilt, for handing her over to the Clave? Whatever it was, he wanted to try and put it out of his head for now.

Reaching into his bedside cabinet again, he produced the folder of pictures he kept near the bottom. They'd been gathered up over the centuries, reminders of some of the more important people he'd known in that time. At least, the ones that had been important to him.

There were pictures of Raphael, Ragnor, Catarina, Dot, even a few of Tessa, Will and Jem. The ones of Ragnor were particularly hard to look at, since it hadn't been long since he'd died. Quickly, he put them at the bottom of the pile, where they could be dealt with later.

Eventually, he found the picture of Camille, near the end. For a moment, he held it, not knowing what to do with it. Deep down, he knew he should probably get rid of it, since he was trying to cut her out of his life properly and everything. He set it down on the bedside table, putting the other photos back in the folder. If he'd been in a better mood, it might have occurred to him that he ought to get one of Alexander. As it was, he wasn't thinking about that. Instead, he was looking at the picture again. It was old, taken on a rare good day. He couldn't look at it for longer than a couple of minutes at a time, it brought back too many memories…

" _Do you think I could be a High Warlock at some point, like Ragnor?" he asked, trying to sleep, even though outside the sun was shining, and despite the heavy curtains, there was still some light in the room._

" _No. Now stop daydreaming and let me sleep."_

" _Why not?" He didn't know why he was continuing- it never went well._

" _Magnus, listen. Being a High Warlock is a big responsibility," she explained, as if he was a child. "Do you honestly think that you could handle that? Look at Ragnor, and then look at yourself. I don't mean to sound rude, but you really aren't that good a warlock. You'll probably never meet the standards of someone like Ragnor."_

He shook his head, trying to snap out of the memory, trying to get his head out of Camille's bedroom in her London mansion, and back to his own loft in Brooklyn, in the present day. _Why did I ever accept that? Why did I ever let her talk to me like that?_ He sighed, knowing perfectly well why. He'd never had very high self-esteem, what with one thing and another, and Camille was the sort of person who was very, very good at exploiting that fact.

After a while, he decided to put the picture back inside the drawer, get a drink and deal with it later. Getting out of bed, he was trying to decide what sort of drink he should make. However, when he got into the kitchen, all thoughts of drinking went out of his head, because Ragnor was sitting at his kitchen counter, in the same spot where Alexander had sat just over a week ago.

"Okay, this is just getting ridiculous." Magnus did not have the energy to deal with this right now. He ran a hand through his hair and looked around, pretending to be scanning the room for somebody. "Do any other ghosts from my past want to drop by tonight, or is this it?"

"What sort of greeting is that?" Ragnor looked genuinely offended. "I've been gone for weeks, and the first time I show up again you look annoyed."

"You're dead! I've been trying to accept that and move on! Forgive me if I'm not conjuring you up every five minutes, but I've got things to do, a present that's actually worth living for again. I didn't want to see you tonight, I wanted to have a drink, maybe call Alexander and try to sleep. So, I'm sorry if I'm not exactly overjoyed that you're here, defying all logic, because I didn't want you here." Okay, now he'd probably gone too far. Ragnor was past the point of looking offended, he actually looked hurt.

"Magnus, you must've wanted me here, even if it was just subconsciously. Still, maybe it's best if I go, since you clearly aren't in the mood to talk to me right now." Before Magnus could say another word, he'd already disappeared.

"Ragnor!" he called, cursing his own stupidity. Why had he said that? It had been so long since he'd seen Ragnor- the day of Alexander's wedding, if he remembered correctly. He could've used his help, on a lot of things. But he was dead, and if his ghost was only going to appear at inconvenient moments like that…

He sank into one of the chairs at his kitchen table, not wanting to sit at the counter, but still needing to sit somewhere. If Tessa or Raphael were here, they'd make a joke about him getting old, and it just might make him smile- even though 400 really wasn't that old, not compared to other warlocks. Instead, he felt tears stab at his eyes, and he blinked them away quickly. He rarely cried, and he wasn't about to let this be one of those occasions.

However, he was exhausted, and it had been a really shitty night, and it was this or wake Alexander up and bother him with his problems, and Alec probably had enough to deal with… Maybe he could allow himself a couple of minutes, then take it from there.

A couple of minutes turned into ten, before he finally managed to make himself stop. He wasn't entirely sure what possessed him to do what he did next. After all, for the last few weeks, he'd kept up quite a few boundaries where Alexander was concerned. He never talked about the darker parts of his past, and he never let Alec see him unless he looked reasonably decent. And right now, he was well aware that he looked worse than he had in a long time. Which was why it made zero sense that he'd opened up a portal, one which would take him straight to Alec's room. He took a deep breath.

"I must be out of my mind," he muttered before he stepped through.

Alec

Alec had been trying to get to sleep, but he wasn't having very much luck. More than anything, he wished he was with Magnus. It was strange- he hadn't expected to miss him this much, or this strongly. Yet his arms ached to hold him, and he wished more than anything that he was back in Magnus's apartment. He located his phone, and was about to call his boyfriend's number when a portal opened up in the wall across from his bed.

Instinctively, he climbed out of bed, grabbing his stele and the handle of a seraph knife from his bedside table. He summoned the blade and was preparing to fight- though he wasn't entirely sure why a potential attacker would come to his room specifically- when Magnus stepped into the room through the portal.

Alec almost didn't recognise him at first. His eyes looked red and puffy, even from here, and the glamour was down for once. His hair was messier than Alec had ever seen it, as if he'd been tossing and turning most of the night, then ran his hands through it a couple of times. Alec didn't realise he'd dropped his stele and blade until he heard them clatter to the floor. Magnus raised an eyebrow.

"You weren't going to use those on me, were you?" There was something in his voice. Sadness, maybe, or resignation, like he'd always known this would happen.

"Sorry, I didn't realise it was you." He smiled, as calmly as he could. "You should've called me, then I would've known to expect you at least." He took a step towards Magnus, wanting to pull him close but not sure how he would react. In all the time they'd known each other, he didn't think he'd ever seen Magnus look this sad, and he didn't know how to help.

"Don't worry about it." He waved a hand over his eyes, putting the glamour back up, and for once Alec didn't say anything. Instead, he continued to move closer until he was standing directly in front of Magnus and took hold of his hands.

"What's wrong?" he whispered. He didn't want to push Magnus to share something he wasn't ready to talk about, but at the same time, he didn't want to let him suffer in silence and feel like he didn't care.

"Where do you want me to start?" He sighed and went to sit on the end of the bed. "Do you think I could stay here tonight, and we could talk more in the morning?" Alec nodded.

"Yeah, that's fine." He climbed into bed, and Magnus lay beside him. Alec's bed was smaller than Magnus's, so they had to lie close together so they could both stay on it. Alec wrapped his arms around Magnus and pulled him close, as much in an attempt to comfort him as anything else.

Magnus

Perhaps this hadn't been the best idea in the world, Magnus realised as he tried to sleep. He'd thought it would be easier now that he was here with Alexander, and to some degree it was. However, he still couldn't clear his head enough to allow him to sleep.

"Alexander," he whispered after a minute. "Are you awake?"

"Yeah, I am now. What's wrong?"

"Nothing, really. I just… I just had a really, really awful night, and I thought I might feel better if I talked about it. The problem is, though, that I don't know where to start." He wondered whether or not he was imagining it, or if Alec pulled him even closer. His chest was now pressed against Magnus's back, and he could feel the fabric of Alec's t-shirt against his skin now, so maybe he wasn't imagining it.

"Maybe start at the beginning," he suggested. And so he did. He told him about the nightmare, about the pictures, about Camille and Ragnor and the stupid things he'd said. When he was done, he turned in Alec's arms, burying his face in his neck.

"Is there anything I can do?" Alec asked after a minute. Magnus thought about that.

"I don't know. Just… stay with me tonight, that's all." Even asking for that felt like too much. Alec kissed his forehead, almost catching him by surprise.

"No problem." He smiled. "I mean, you're at a bit of an advantage, since there's nowhere else I could really go other than here. All the same, I'm happy to stay." His hazel eyes were warm, and Magnus couldn't help falling in love with him even more.

"I love you," he whispered, as unthinkingly as he had the first time. As soon as he realised what he'd said, he closed his eyes. "Sorry, I didn't mean to say that. I've been telling myself over and over, I shouldn't say that again, I don't want to-" He was cut off by Alec's lips pressing against his, hard and fast.

"Don't be silly," he whispered, after he'd pulled away. "Say it if you want to say it, I don't mind anymore." Magnus blinked at him, taking a moment to absorb what he'd said. After a moment, he leaned in to kiss him. Another impulsive decision- it seemed that most decisions he made tonight regarding Alexander were impulsive.

The kiss quickly escalated, and before Magnus knew what was happening, he was lying back on the bed, Alec on top of him, kissing him passionately. He rested his hands on Alec's shoulders, debating whether or not to switch positions. Just then, Alec broke the kiss.

"Do you want to swap places?" he asked. "Or would you rather not do this at all?" Magnus thought about it for a minute. On the one hand, he wouldn't normally trust anyone enough to allow them to take this position during sex, but on the other hand… this was Alec, and he was always an exception. However, could he trust him with this? He closed his eyes, leaned up and kissed him. Just this once, he would.

So far, Magnus wasn't regretting this decision. Alec was awkward, yes, but it was obvious his awkwardness came from inexperience. He was figuring out what to do, testing out things that Magnus had done to him previously, seeing if they worked or not.

"Do you want to change places?" Magnus whispered eventually.

"Am I really that bad at this?" Alec asked, whispering too.

"No, it's just..." he trailed off as Alec kissed his neck.

"How does that feel?" he breathed.

"Good," he replied, his tone light and slightly teasing.

"Just good?" Alec was smiling, and he bent his head again to kiss Magnus's neck.

Maybe this wasn't such a good idea- it had been at least half an hour, but it didn't feel like they were getting anywhere. Realising this probably wasn't the right time to do this, Magnus was just about to voice these feelings when Alec lightly bit his neck. Immediately, his eyes flew open, panic flooding him. He tried to quell it, to remind himself that everything was fine, but even so, he was briefly reminded of sharp fangs piercing his skin. It was only a moment, but it was enough.

"Alec," he whispered, pushing at his shoulders. It might not work, but he had to try. "Stop, that's enough." Alec's response was instant. He shifted so that he was lying beside Magnus, leaning over him a little so that he could cup his face.

"Is everything okay?" Magnus frowned, not sure what to tell him.

"Yeah." He sighed. "Just don't do that again, please?" Alec nodded, and kissed his forehead.

"Alright." He moved again so that he wasn't leaning over Magnus anymore. "Is there anything else you want to talk about?"

"Don't take this the wrong way, but I was going to say we should stop even before you bit me. It wasn't anything you were doing, it just wasn't the right time. There are conversations we need to have before we try that again, and now isn't the time to be having them. Maybe tomorrow, once we've had a chance to sleep, but not until then, alright?" Alec nodded again, and wrapped his arms around Magnus, who turned so that he was facing away from him.

"Do you mind if I ask why you didn't want me biting your neck?" Alec asked eventually. For a moment, Magnus wasn't sure whether or not he should tell him the truth. Taking a deep breath, he decided to confide in him- he was doing that a lot lately, it seemed.

"Back when I was with Camille, sometimes she..." He paused, not sure how to phrase it.

"It's alright, take all the time you need," Alec whispered. Magnus closed his eyes, and took a moment to think of the right words. Eventually, he opened his eyes again.

"She used to drink my blood quite a lot, whether I wanted her to or not." Again, he felt Alec's arms tighten slightly around him. "It didn't happen all the time, of course, and I usually did something to deserve it," he added quickly. "Still, it was enough to make me not want anyone to do that again. For now, at least, that includes you too."

"Alright. That's fine, I can accept that." He paused. "Also, I highly doubt that anything you could've done would have warranted that. Either way, I'm not going to do anything like that, not unless we've talked about it first." He didn't address anything else that he'd said, and Magnus didn't blame him. He had told him a pretty big thing, after all- maybe they could talk about that another day.

"That's good to know." They were quiet for a few minutes, before Magnus finally fell asleep.

The sound of an alarm clock woke him up the next morning. For a moment, he felt disoriented, waking up in an unfamiliar room, with an unfamiliar alarm. Then he turned his head and saw Alec reaching out to switch off the alarm, and he remembered how he'd ended up here.

"Sorry about that," he muttered.

"You know, I'm not even surprised that you have an alarm clock, to be honest."

"I don't even notice it anymore, I've had it so long." Nodding, Magnus turned his head so that he was facing away from Alec again.

"Do you want me to go, so you can get on with your day?"

"No, you can stay if you want."

"I probably shouldn't, with things being the way they are at the moment. I mean, you're welcome to come over to my place later, but it's probably best if I leave just now."

"Alright." They both got out of bed, and Magnus quickly used his magic to fix his hair. He'd done this often enough that he didn't need a mirror anymore. When he turned to look at Alec, he was smiling.

"Do you have a t-shirt or something I can borrow? I'll give it back later, don't worry." Alec nodded and handed him a black t-shirt, which he quickly pulled on.

"Are you okay to go home? Or is there anything else you want to talk about?" Magnus shook his head.

"No, I'm fine. Thanks for letting me stay, though." Alec moved so that he was standing in front of him, taking hold of both of his hands.

"No problem. Thanks for letting me in. You didn't have to tell me all that stuff last night, but I'm glad you did. I'm here if you want to talk about anything else, even if it's not something serious, like, I don't know… that one time you met George Washington or something."

"Strangely enough, I never actually met Washington. Of all the famous people I've met, he was never one of them."

"I see. Maybe one of these days you can tell me about some of the people you have met."

"Maybe I will." He let go of Alec's hands and turned towards the wall where he'd opened up the portal last night. "I'll talk to you later, alright?" Alec nodded again, and Magnus summoned the portal. He looked back at him once and smiled at him, before stepping through and going back to his apartment.


End file.
